James Chapman’s Democrats notion is a doomed distraction

James Chapman’s Democrats notion is a doomed distraction

Comments 0 Comment

The existing parties are the only ones that can stop Brexit James Chapman is not a name that many people will have been aware of before this week. Some will remember him as the Political Editor of the Daily Mail; a few might recall that he became George Osborne’s Director of Communications after the 2015 election; fewer still will have known that he was briefly Chief of Staff at David Davis’ Brexit Department. He has, however, now burst back onto…

Read More Read More

How an anti-Brexit party could be created without the need to leave existing parties

How an anti-Brexit party could be created without the need to leave existing parties

Comments 0 Comment

The Labour/Cooperative party provides a legal template It has been rehearsed many time over – the massive challenges that a new party would face simply getting off the ground. Now LD blogger, Mark Pack has come up with an ingenious and what he says is legal solution using the provision within electoral law that allows candidates to stand as joint Labour/Co-operative Party candidates. He writes: “..”This allows a candidate to stand as the joint candidate of two different political parties,…

Read More Read More

The key battlegrounds for next time – whenever that is

The key battlegrounds for next time – whenever that is

Comments 0 Comment

The above charts are taken from an excellent new paper just published by the Commons Library and is available to download. This will certainly be a key resource for punters at the next election. They show the most marginal seats for the three main parties at Westminster. In the case of the SNP all seats are listed. We all know that there were many very tight results on June 8th and the number of seats that were held or changed…

Read More Read More

David Davis still firm favourite to succeed TMay while Johnson slips to 5th

David Davis still firm favourite to succeed TMay while Johnson slips to 5th

Comments 0 Comment

The latest CON leadership betting David Davis 18% Phillip Hammond 9% Jacob Rees-Mogg 9% Amber Rudd 9% Boris Johnson 8% Ruth Davidson 5% Damian Green 4% This is based on last trades on Betfair. What will ignite this market is any suggestion in the run-up or at conference in the first week of October that a challenge could be mounted to TMay. Mike Smithson Follow @MSmithsonPB Tweet

Meet the ex-chief of staff to the BrexSec now the de facto Brexit opposition leader

Meet the ex-chief of staff to the BrexSec now the de facto Brexit opposition leader

Comments 0 Comment

Past time for sensible MPs in all parties to admit Brexit is a catastrophe, come together In new party if need be, and reverse it #euref19 — James Chapman (@jameschappers) August 8, 2017 Boris Johnson should be jailed over Brexit claims, says ex-David Davis aide https://t.co/oHpnQuaODA — Mike Smithson (@MSmithsonPB) August 10, 2017 Suddenly what was looking like a very boring political August has been shaken up by a series strong anti-Brexit Tweets from James Chapman – former Mail political…

Read More Read More

It’s (Third) Party Time!!

It’s (Third) Party Time!!

Comments 0 Comment

Stodge looks back to the 80s to reflect on today’s developments I joined the Liberal Party in 1980 and by January 1982 was an activist in south-east London and I remember going out knocking on doors in the bleak midwinter and coming back astonished at the collapse of the Conservative vote in an area which had routinely voted 65-70% Conservative at local elections. Perhaps the house owners were taking pity on me – the passage of time may make it…

Read More Read More

Ruth Davidson’s Scottish successes saved TMay’s bacon on June 8th but that comes at a price

Ruth Davidson’s Scottish successes saved TMay’s bacon on June 8th but that comes at a price

Comments 0 Comment

The mathematics of the Tory power struggle The chart is very simple but illustrates clearly why Scottish Conservative leader feels able to to put pressure on TMay over the PM’s hardline immigration rhetoric. Davidson is making a pro-immigration argument that’s rarely heard from a Conservative. She says ‘with the country on the road to full employment, potential for growth is facing ever greater limitations’ without the boost from immigrants. The Scottish Conservative leader attacks May for her “easy slogans” on…

Read More Read More

The UKIP leadership race – Alastair Meeks marks your card

The UKIP leadership race – Alastair Meeks marks your card

Comments 0 Comment

As Mike Smithson pointed out last week, these are fallow days for political betting. We have been spoiled in recent years with a nonstop cavalcade of elections, referendums and leadership contests. We are suffering withdrawal pangs. So far this summer, only UKIP have given us a full-blown leadership election. (The Lib Dems let us down by having a walkover.) Interest in this election, as in the party itself this year, has been minimal. With UKIP leadership elections being so frequent,…

Read More Read More